Frogs are loving the newly restored ponds and wetland area! The amorous amphibians have been spotted in the water and their developing eggs can be found along the edges of the pond.

We began restoring our ponds and wetland area in October, working with Froglife to clear to clear weeds and create a new viewing platform (find out more about our clean-up day here) and the current breeding European Common Frogs (Rana temporaria) are a testament to all our hard work!

A clump of fresh frogspawn.

The eggs will develop rapidly over the next few weeks, with their development dependent on the temperature. Warmer temperatures mean faster development. The black spheres shown in the image above will develop into tiny tadpoles, then break free from their eggs.

These eggs are beginning to develop, with the embryo starting to resemble a tadpole.

Frogs are just one of many species to live and reproduce in our ponds. To find out more about pondlife and our restoration project, join us on Thursday, April 17th from 11 to 3 for the official relaunch of the ponds with Tower Hamlets and Froglife!

The tree surgeons were hard at work over the past week, helping to remove material from our bank bordering Millwall Park. As a part of our grassland restoration work, we are clearing scrub and trees in order to create an open grassland habitat to support our rare and native wildflowers. This work is supported by the borough of Tower Hamlets. The clearing work is similar to that which we’ve carried out on other banks on the farm, with the help of corporate volunteer groups and which are already showing excellent results.

Trees and fast-growing vegetation such as brambles quickly block the light and take up nutrients that wildflowers need. The aspect of these banks is particularly good for grasslands as they get lots of sunshine. We’ll be using our grazing animals to maintain the banks, keeping grasses short and pruning back new growth. This means you might be able to see our grazers hard at work from Millwall Park. Many thanks to Tower Hamlets and CSG Ushers for their support and hard work on this project.

Following a very wet, but mild winter, we’re starting to see signs of Spring around the farm. The February half term holidays saw some lovely weather, with Saturday being especially bright and sunny. The rising temperatures and lengthening days have brought many trees and bulbs into flower across the farm, creating a fantastic display of blooms in all shapes, colours and sizes.

Blossom and bird boxes. Many birds can be spotted gathering nesting material, while others are already raising young.

We’ve spotted wood pigeons and squirrels eating cherry blossoms as well as pollinators taking advantage of the nectar-rich spring flowers. Bumblebees and hoverflies have been visiting the crocuses and butterflies should be taking advantage of some of these nectar sources soon too. You may also notice nesting birds at this time of year. Magpies can be seen conspicuously carrying nesting material and other species may already be taking advantage of the warm temperatures to get an early start on raising their young. Keep an eye out for adult birds carrying food in their beaks, a clue that there may be little mouths to feed in the nest!

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About

We are Mudchute Park & Farm, the largest city farm in London with 32 acres of countryside in the middle of the Isle of Dogs. Offering a bit of countryside in the city, we are open to the public all year free of charge.